Easiest way to get from Salzburg to Munich during migrant crises

http://www.bahn.de/blitz/view/fernverkehr/uebersicht.shtml
http://fahrplan.oebb.at/bin/help.exe/dn?tpl=showmap_external (click on the icon near Salzburg)

You can try to translate yourself with google. I understand the situation is:
- no long distance trains between Salzburg and Munich at least till Oct. 4th
- local trains (run by Meridian) between Freilassing and Munich are running
- in ordinary situation you could reach Freilassing by S3 local train, but it is no more running between Salzburg Liefering and Freilassing. Liefering is only 3,5 kms. from Freilassing. There is a local bus #24 covering the road between the centre of Salzburg, or Salzburg Mülln station and Freilassing. Bus #24 works on reduced itinerary on Sunday

I wonder if a taxi can be found to bring you to Freilassing. It could take some time as everybody is checked and it could be expensive but I cannot imagine a more convenient solution.

Now we get to really creative solutions:
- from the OEBB website we understand that the Korridorzuge to western Austria are running. These Austrian trains run through German territory without stopping on it. If you manage to get a train to Kufstein, you should find some connections in Kufstein to Munich
- or you could try to travel Salzburg-Zell am See-Wörgl-Kufstin (entirely on Austrian ground) and switch in Wörgl or Kufstein to a train bound to Munich

Please understand this is an emergency situation, so it cannot be planned not even a few days in advance. You should look for information locally and shortly before your travel time as nobody can foresee how things will be evolving.

Thanks Lachera for that helpful post. I'll be travelling the Salzburg-Munich route on Oct. 9....

Does anybody know roughly how long it takes to get across the border going to Freilassing from Salzburg? I have a backup plan to take the train from Freilassing to Munich, but want to allow plenty of time to make it to Freilassing from Salzburg either by taxi or bus....normally it looks to be about a 20 minute journey, but I don't know if I should plan for an hour, 2 hours, or more to get to Freilassing with these border control checks...

Thanks all!

Take a taxi from your hotel to freilassing! Don't take the bus! That bus did not run regularly and there were mobs trying to get on bus. The taxi might run you about 25 euro. There was no back up and they waved you through if the taxi driver told them he had Americans . That bus was a nightmare. The train from freilassing waited for a lot of people before taking off. I would say they are in irregular operations. Don't ruin your trip worrying about it. You will get there. We did have to carry our luggage up and down several staircases in freilassing as no escalators so I was glad I only travel with a 22" suitcase.

Thanks Cynthia, I will heed your advice!

I was not sure of the cost of taxis but at 25 euros, that is pretty cheap to me to minimize the hassles; I would be more concerned if the taxis were taking advantage of the situation by charging 100 euros or something outrageous (or it took hours to get across, with the meter running), and I was concerned that taxis would not be allowed/willing to cross the border. I'll just have to be flexible with my plans that day. :)

Yes, thanks Cynthia. We will be making that crossing on Monday.

Thank you very much for your suggestions! As our trip is still a couple few weeks away I would really appreciate hearing how all of your experiences go. Thank you in advance!!

We made the crossing both ways last week.

From Munich/Freilassing (we went on September 27th) they have a shuttle bus in front of the station, timed with the trains. Hop on that and it'll drop you off in front of Salzburg Hbf. There's not much info on the German side about this as the trains going to Salzburg just say they're terminating in Freilassing.

From Salzburg to Munich/Freilassing (we went on September 30th) it's way easier to get a taxi from your hotel or the train station as others have said. They'll shut off their meter since it's outside the city limits, but our driver was quite cool. The main crossing was backed up to the river in Salzburg so he went to the next one further north. For 4 of us with 3 big bags it was only €30 from Salzburg Hbf. The border guard just waved us through when the driver said we were American. There's no direct shuttle bus otherwise (not sure why). The official stance is take two normal public buses with a transfer. I forget the numbers but the info desk inside the station can help. They claim every 10 min for the first bus but we waited 20 min before doing the taxi.

Basically, get the taxi, drop the few extra euros, and don't stress it :)

PS: A few toys for the kids at Salzburg Hbf would probably we quite welcome. We dropped a few things on our way out. So terrible to see it all face to face!

I hope this update will help other travellers. On Oct 8th we were in the same situation with pre-purchased tickets on the train from Salzburg to Munich, but with no trains running. Here is what we did and it all worked very smoothly. First we had our hotel order a large taxi to take us to
Freilassing, Germany around 10 in the morning on the day we were booked to travel. The taxi handled all our luggage. It only took about 20 minutes and cost $17 euros ($20 euros with tip). About 15 minutes into the taxi ride, there was a quick police stop and the officer just looked in and let us go through with no questions and no request to show passports. We were soon at the train station and there was no line-up and the teller spoke English and said our existing tickets were valid and gave us an extra paper to show the new train number and time, which was at 11:16. There was a clean store there to buy a sandwich and drink. We did have to carry our luggage down a flight of stairs and up another to reach our platform, but no big deal. We even got seats outside to wait for the train. The train was on time and empty when it arrived and no issues with the tickets. So although a few of us were stressed at each stage of this adventure, it could not have worked out more smoothly. My advice is do not take the bus. Good luck to others in the same situation! 😊

My wife and I also made the Salzburg to Munich run today (10/9), and had the same experience as the previous poster. Took a taxi from hotel to Freilassing train station, 25 minutes for 22 euros, quick passport check at the border, and no issues. Took the train to Munich, and enjoyed the scenery along the way! The were no refugees at the bridge border crossing; there is a huge tent city for them at the Salzburg station and in the parking garage on one of the levels...

Thank you very much for your report Wade!

I already have paper tickets for the Salzburg -Munich trip. Do you know if I need to venture into the Salzburg station and get them stamped 'not used' and buy new ones or... Will the same ones work for Freilasing to Munich?
How often are there trains doing that route?

Thank you in advance for your help!

"Do you know if I need to venture into the Salzburg station and get them stamped 'not used' and buy new ones"

I can't answer the question about your tickets, as I don't know what type of tickets you have. You should be able to use them.

However, one point to mention is that it's really not a big deal to "venture" into the Salzburg rail station. I was there a number of times in the last few weeks, and everything is more-or-less normal, except for the large medical tents outside and the increased police presence. If you want a definite answer on your tickets, go to the ticket office at the station and ask them.

I have also booked advance train tickets for an early December trip to the Germany / Austria Christmas markets. I will be traveling from Venice through Verona to Innsbruck and had planned to spend a few nights in Innsbruck, then head to Salzburg, then from Salzburg to Munich. I am booked on RailJet trains between Innsbruck-Salzburg and Salzburg-Munich (this leg in first class, if that makes any difference). My tickets on those two Railjet trains say they are NONREFUNDABLE, and neither are my tickets from Venice-Verona-Innsbruck. Anybody know how I could cancel the Innsbruck-Salzburg-Munich trains and try to get a train directly from Innsbruck-Munich? Or should I just keep everything as it is and hope things will be straightened out by then? My travel dates are around December 8th. I'm starting to get really worried about this. Thanks for any tips and advice.

The official OBB RailJet site has this update today:

Train services from Salzburg to Germany

Local train services from Salzburg to Freilassing are in service again from the 23rd October. We offer hourly suburban train services from Salzburg to Freilassing based on a special schedule.All other local train services from Salzburg Liefering to Freilassing are cancelled.All other local train services from Salzburg Liefering to Freilassing are cancelled.Long distance train services to Munich remain suspended until further notice.

Just an update. With the Meridian trains running as of October 23 on an hourly basis from Salzburg to Munich it was extremely easy to make our transit. The situation is still fluid because of the migrants still entering Austria. They are being housed under the station in Salzburg and are not seeming to be an issue with the recent return of the local trains.

We had pre purchased tickets for the other train that is still suspended but upon visiting the agent on arrival in Salzburg he wrote something on the back of our ticket and gave us the schedule for the Meridian trains for our departure day...... Very organized!!!

A big thank you all the forum members that had I put into this topic for me :-)

book a ticket at flixbus .com

Traveled to Salzburg today from Cseky Krumlov in a hired shuttle van. 30 euros. Dropped off at the Salzburg train station. Would recommend anyone around the station to be very mindful of possessions and move out of the area. Several groups of migrant young men hanging around with nothing to do. Police presence in the area.